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To empower top principals, CPS is doubling the size of the District’s Independent Schools Principal (ISP) Program – which provides high-performing principals with the autonomy to operate their schools with reduced oversight from Central Office and the flexibility to innovate in their schools – by adding 27 experienced, successful principals. The District is also implementing new reforms to the ISP Program to ensure principals are able to most effectively manage their schools and support the larger CPS community.

“The strength of our schools is a direct reflection of the strong leadership that guides them—and I want to congratulate each and every one of our principals today for the tremendous growth that our students and schools have made today,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Our principals remain essential partners in helping our students make unprecedented academic gains, with record-high test scores and graduation rates. By empowering our school communities to lead with greater flexibility, we can ensure that our students will receive a high-quality education tailored to meet their needs, while putting them on a path to a brighter future.”

“A great principal exists behind every great school, and as a District we must do everything in our power to cultivate transformative leaders that will drive student achievement,” said CPS Chief Education Officer Dr. Janice K. Jackson. “Programs like ISP and the Chicago Principal Fellowship have allowed our best leaders to take on greater leadership roles, expand their professional capacity, and educate their peers to improve capacity throughout the District, and we will continue to seek out innovative tools to develop and retain the school leaders who will help build a better future for our students.”

CPS and The Chicago Public Education Fund (The Fund) today also announced the new 25-member class of Chicago Principal Fellows, a 25 percent expansion in the size of the program. Through the Chicago Principals Fellowship, school leaders are provided with 12-months of executive leadership development through a partnership with Northwestern University. For the first time, the annual cohort of Principal Fellows will include 25 principals instead of the 20 member classes in previous years.

“Principals are a key driver of student and school success, which is why The Fund is committed to increasing the number of top-performing principals in Chicago,” said Heather Y. Anichini, president and CEO of The Fund. “On our 2015 Principal Engagement Survey, principals ranked increasing differentiated professional development opportunities among the top three ways to improve their job satisfaction. We want to support and retain Chicago’s best public school principals by expanding and investing in top-quality leadership development programs like the Chicago Principals Fellowship.”

ISP ExpansionMayor Emanuel and CPS announced the first cohort of ISPs prior to the beginning of this school year to provide some of the District’s best school leaders with additional autonomy to manage their schools. ISPs are exempt from network oversight and evaluation by Network Chiefs, and they are provided with greater autonomy in regard to professional learning, budgeting and purchasing. ISPs also have the opportunity to engage in a unique, peer-to-peer professional learning community to discuss and share effective practices among their peers.

To expand on the success of the program’s first year and provide a greater number of effective principals with flexibility to innovate, CPS invited qualified principals to apply for the ISP Program this spring and will be adding 27 additional principals to the program, bringing the total of ISPs to 54.

To improve the effectiveness of the ISP program, CPS is making the following updates to the program that will increase principal autonomy and responsibility:

1.Modified Principal Evaluation: CPS is committed to streamlining the principal evaluation process for ISPs to ensure they are able to maximize the time and energy they are able to direct to school operations. The state of Illinois requires that principal supervisors conduct two formal observations and issue each leader’s final principal rating, and CPS is exploring possible modifications to this process while still meeting state requirements.

2.Self-Directed Management of District Priorities: Recognizing that ISPs represent a diverse cohort of stellar principals, the District is committed to providing ISPs more time to innovate in their schools by reducing reporting requirements. Next year, all CPS principals will be provided with more robust information on their schools through the District’s management Dashboard. As a result of this increase in available information, ISPs will have reduced reporting requirements in exchange for self-monitoring through Dashboard.

3.Opportunities to Expand Impact: As some of the district’s top principals, ISPs have demonstrated an eagerness to share their expertise and successes with their colleagues. This year, CPS will grant ISPs greater choice around opportunities to expand their impact within the District. Beginning this year, ISPs will have the opportunity to serve as demonstration schools, principal mentors, or serve as advisors to CPS Central Office departments. ISPs will serve in one or more of these capacities to share their learnings and help build capacity throughout the District.

Chicago Principals FellowshipCPS and its partners at The Fund today also announced 25 principals who will participate in the Chicago Principals Fellowship. After two successful years, CPS is expanding the Fellows cohort size from 20 to 25 principals, including five fellowship spots reserved for charter school principals in Chicago.

Fellows participate in a rigorous program provided by Northwestern’s Center for Nonprofit Management at Kellogg and its School for Education and Social Policy. Principal Fellows receive a leadership assessment and executive coaching through the program, and they meet monthly with Chief Education Officer Jackson to discuss key District topics and make policy recommendations.

As part of the fellowship program, Principals Fellows commit to continuing to lead in CPS for at least three years.

The following principals will participate in the new cohort of Principal Fellows:

Elizabeth Alvarez – John C. Dore Elementary School

Peter Auffant – James Shields Middle School

Michael Biela – Hyman G. Rickover Naval Academy High School

Karen Boran – John Hancock College Preparatory High School

Christopher Brake – Norman A. Bridge Elementary School

Carol Devens-Falk – Daniel J. Corkery Elementary School

Otis Dunson – George Armstrong International Studies Elementary School

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Chicago Public Schools is the third largest school district in the United States with more than 600 schools and serves 371,000 children. Our vision is that every student in every neighborhood will be engaged in a rigorous, well-rounded instructional program and will graduate prepared for success in college, career and life.